New to View: Dec. 10
By Bob Bloom
The following titles are being released on Tuesday, Dec. 10, unless otherwise noted:
Daytime Revolution (Blu-ray)
Details: 2024, Kino Lorber-Shout! Studios
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: During the 1960s and ’70s one of the most popular syndicated daytime television shows was “The Mike Douglas Show.”
The episodes, which featured guests from movies, television, music, politics and culture, was a top-rated program, at one time reaching at least 40 million viewers.
Douglas, a former big-band singer and the voice of Prince Charming in Disney’s 1950 animated classic “Cinderella,” began in Cleveland in 1961. By 1967 the show aired in 171 markets.
During the week beginning Feb. 14, 1972, the show was hosted by John Lennon and Yoko Ono. Lennon and Ono also acted as producers and handpicked a series of then-controversial guests including Yuppie founder Jerry Rubin, Black Panther chairman Bobby Seale, political activist Ralph Nader and comedian George Carlin.
Lennon and Ono offered a different and radical take on the traditional daytime format. It included candid question-and-answer sessions, conversations about radical politics, conceptual art events, Lennon’s reminiscences about his life with Ono as well as The Beatles and one-of-a-kind musical performances.
Those included a duet with Chuck Berry and a poignant rendition of Lennon’s “Imagine.”
The documentary about a troubled time that was nearly as turbulent as today’s, these episodes spotlight the power of art when it has the ability to reach out and communicate. It also is a testament to two artists who never took the easy way out as they fought for their vision of a better world.
The episodes are a wonderful time machine for fans of Douglas’ show as well as Lennon and Ono. It’s nostalgic and magical.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.78:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include uncut musical performances by Lennon and Ono, a duet by Lennon and Berry of “Memphis, Tennessee,” performances of “It’s So Hard” and “Luck of the Irish” and a restoration demonstration.
The Wild Robot: Collector’s Edition (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray + digital & Blu-ray + digital)
Release date: Dec. 3
Details: 2024, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Rated: PG, action danger, thematic elements
The lowdown: A very entertaining animated tale about a Roz, a robot shipwrecked on an island who must adapt to the harsh surroundings.
Gradually, Roz, voiced by Lupita Nyong’o, begins to build relationships with the animals on the island, including a clever fox, voiced by Pedro Pascal. Roz also becomes the adoptive parent of an orphaned gosling named Brightbill.
The story is simple, but it is told with fine sophistication and heart. Writer-director Chris Sanders’ adaptation of Peter Brown’s award-winning best-seller deals with self-discovery, the bridge between technology and nature and a moving chronicle of what it means to be alive and connected to all living things.
The film, one of the best animated releases of the year, garnered an impressive 97 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English Dolby Atmos and French and Spanish 7.1 Dolby digital plus; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture: English Dolby Atmos and 2.0 DVS and French and Spanish 7.1 Dolby digital plus; English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Bonus materials include an alternate opening with an introduction by Sanders; a commentary track, featurettes on the cast, voice talents performing their most memorable lines and how filmmakers and cast members enhanced Brown’s thematic elements to deepen its emotional connection to audiences; a deleted sequence from the film in storyboard form; a look at the animation process; a behind-the-scenes look at Kris Bowers’ score and Maren Morris’ two new songs; a how-to-draw lesson with Sanders and Nyong’o; and a lesson on creating your own Brightbill kite.
Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey II (Blu-ray)
Details: 2024, Scream Factory-Shout! Studios
Rated: Not rated, graphic violence, gore
The lowdown: Trouble is brewing deep within the Hundred Acre Wood. Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Owl and Tigger are ferociously angry as their lives are endangered now that Christopher Robin has revealed their existence.
No longer wanting to live in the shadows, the fearsome foursome decide to take the fight to Christopher’s hometown of Ashdown. As they travel, they leave a bloody trail of death and mayhem.
Winnie and his friends will show everyone that they are deadlier, stronger and smarter than anyone could imagine — and get revenge on their former childhood friend once and for all.
I doubt author A.A. Milne, who created Pooh, and illustrator E.H. Shepard, who illustrated the bear and his friends, would recognize nor approve of what filmmakers Rhys Frake-Waterfield, who wrote and directed the first movie and coauthored the story with screenwriter Matt Leslie, have done with their beloved characters.
The movie is unpretentious, gory and silly, abetted by better visuals than its predecessor.
Still the sequel, which garnered a 46 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes, is an improvement over the first movie, which earned an abysmal 3 percent fresh rating.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Rambling Rose (Blu-ray)
Details: 1991, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: R, sexual material, language, thematic elements
The lowdown: Laura Dern stars as Rose, a high-spirited, but damaged young woman, hired by a Southern family to perform domestic chores during the Great Depression.
Rose soon begins to develop feelings for Daddy, played by Robert Duvall, who continually rebuffs her unwanted sexual advances.
It seems Rose relates to everyone she meets in the only way she knows how — with an innocent, but highly-charged sexuality.
Dern’s real-life mother, Diane Ladd, plays Mother, who offers Rose protection and love, despite the scandal she creates. Rose also grows close to Buddy (Lukas Haas), the family’s 13-year-old son.
The film is a memory piece, told in flashback by an adult Buddy, played by John Heard. It was directed by Martha Coolidge with a screenplay by Calder Willingham, who adapted his own book.
Critics were impressed with the movie, giving it a 100 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes. The movie also received Academy Award nominations for Dern as best actress and Lane as best supporting actress, making them the first mother-daughter duo to be nominated for Oscars for the same film or in the same year.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track with Coolidge, another with film critic Adam Nayman, an alternate ending and outtakes, an interview with Coolidge and an introduction to the movie by Coolidge.
The Addiction: Limited Edition (4K Ultra HD)
Details: 1995, Arrow Video
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Lili Taylor stars in filmmaker Abel Ferrara’s take on the vampire genre.
Taylor portrays Kathleen, a philosophy student who, on her way home from class, is dragged into an alleyway by Casanova (Annabella Sciorra) and bitten on the neck.
Kathleen quickly falls ill and soon discovers that she is not inflicted with an ordinary disease. She finds she has an aversion to light and a thirst for human blood.
The movie, which also stars Christopher Walken, is rather low key. It was shot in New York in black and white.
“The Addiction,” which appears to be Ferrara’s allegory about drug addiction, is intelligent, shocking and intense. The cast also includes Edie Falco, Paul Calderon, Kathryn Erbe and Michael Imperioli.
The film earned a 74 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 2160p ultra-high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and 2.0 LPCM monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track with Ferrara; a 2018 documentary about the movie featuring Walken, Taylor, Ferrara, composer Joe Delia and cinematographer Ken Kelsch; 2018 interviews with Ferrara and critic-biographer Brad Stevens; an archival piece with Ferrara; and a booklet about the movie.
The Train: 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
Details: 1964, Kino Lorber Studio Classics
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Actor Burt Lancaster and director John Frankenheimer quickly reteamed after the success of their “Seven Days in May” collaboration for this World War II action-thriller set in 1944 France.
Lancaster plays Labiche, a member of the Resistance, who learns that an art fanatic Nazi, Col. Franz Von Waldheim (Paul Scofield), has decided to steal a large collection of rare French paintings and load them onto a train bound for Berlin.
Labiche vows to stop the train at any cost, calling upon his vast array of skills. He loosens rails, shatters tracks and causes head-on collisions.
The movie includes a mostly French cast, including Jeanne Moreau, Suzanne Flon and Michel Simon.
The film received a 94 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.66:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 and 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural;; English SDH subtitles
Don’t miss: Bonus options include two commentary tracks, including one with Frankenheimer, a making of featurette an, an isolated track of Maurice Jarre’s score.
The Block Island Sound (4K Ultra HD)
Details: 2020, Synapse Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Something strange and terrifying is happening off the coast of Block Island.
Birds are inexplicitly dropping from the sky and fish are mysteriously washing up on shore.
People are being impacted as well, with some island residents suffering from puzzling emotional collapse.
Audry, a marine biologist whose brother Harry lives on the island with their father, Tom, who is growing more and more forgetful, confused and angry, returns to town with her daughter.
Audry leads them toward some chilling revelations that will affect her family in unimaginable ways.
This horror feature, which was released on Netflix, deals with familiar contemporary worries such as conspiracy theories, climate change and the breakdown of families.
It is a thrilling and suspenseful movie that earned a 90 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
Technical aspects: 2160p ultra-high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental options include a commentary track with directors Kevin and Matthew McManus, behind-the-scene featurettes on the effects, the challenges of filming on the water and creating special effects on a shoestring budget, casting the movie, McManus home movies and behind-the-scenes Super 8mm footage from Los Angeles.
Rock ‘N’ Roll High School: 45th Anniversary Edition (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray)
Details: 1979, Shout! Studios
Rated: PG
The lowdown: A cult favorite with music provided by the Ramones about the rebellious students at Vince Lombardi High School whose days of music and fun are numbered with the arrival of a new principal,, played by Mary Woronov.
Riff Randell (P.J. Soles), though is not deterred by the strict, dictatorship-like rule of Woronov’s Evelyn Togar, and leads a revolt against her authoritarian methods.
When Togar and a group of parents attempt to burn a pile of records, the students, joined by the Ramones, overthrow the teachers and hall monitors and take over the school.
The police are called, demanding that the students evacuate the building, which they do, but then burn the school down as a final gesture of youthful defiance and rebellion.
The cast also includes Vince Van Patten, Clint Howard, Dey Young, Paul Bartel and Dick Miller. The movie, directed by Alan Arkush, based on a story by Arkush and Joe Dante, earned an 81 percent fresh rating at Rotten Tomatoes.
The three-disc set features a 4K Ultra HD disc and two Blu-ray discs.
Technical aspects: 4K: 2160p ultra-high definition, 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles; Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, , 1.85:1 widescreen picture; English 2.0 DTS-HD Master Audio monaural; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include five commentary tracks on the 4K Ultra HD and one Blu-ray disc. Among those contributing to the commentaries are Arkush, Soles, Howard, Young, executive producer Roger Corman and Stephen B. Armstrong, author of “I Want You Around: The Ramones and the Making of Rock ‘N’ Roll High School”; the second Blu-ray disc contains an interview with Marky Ramone, an revised “Class of ’79: 40 Years of Rock ‘N’ Roll High School” featurette with extended interviews and never-before-seen footage; “Back to School: A Retrospective” featurette; interviews with Soles, Van Patten and Young; an interview Corman conducted by Leonard Maltin; an interview with Arkush; and audio outtakes from the Roxy.
The Last Video Store: Limited Edition (Blu-ray)
Details: 2023, Arrow Video
Rated: R, violence, language
The lowdown: The directing team of Cody Kennedy & Tim Rutherford debut film is a love letter to video stores and the B-movie treasures that lined their shelves.
Moving the story is Nyla, a 20-something, tasked with returning the VHS tapes of her estranged late father to “Blaster Video,” a brick-and-mortar time capsule to an era in which cover art and catchy titles were the main attraction.
The store is run by Kevin, a walking encyclopedia of VHS history and a friend of Nyla’s father.
Included in the returns is an unknown tape with a movie that not even Kevin has knowledge about. Curious to see if it was the last movie Nyla’s father watched before he died, the very curious Kevin and Nyla load it up and press play.
Sure enough, they unwittingly unleash a long-dormant curse and a series of classic movie villains who are plucked from B-movie heaven and hell who run amuck in the store.
The movie is a cinematic love letter filled with charm and chills. It’s a love letter to a bygone era, an ode to physical media and the fans who viewed the tapes; it’s a tribute to the once-dominant havens of movie magic and wisdom and the knowledgeable heroes such as Kevin who staffed them.
And as one of those who haunted my neighborhood video stores, I recommend this feature.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English SDH subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a commentary track by film critics Matt Donato and Meagan Navarro; a visual essay by film critic Heather Wixson, co-author of “In Search of Darkness”; “Nostalgia Fuel,” a video essay by film critic Marilyn Pedlar; three short films by Kennedy and Rutherford, including their original “The Last Video Store”; “The Video Store Commercial,” a 2019 short film by Kennedy and Rutherford; clips from their first attempted feature movie; a behind-the-scenes featurette; 3 more short films; and a booklet about the movie.
Abruptio (Blu-ray)
Details: 2023, Anchor Bay Entertainment-MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A strange horror feature about Les Hackel, a loser with a dead-end job who was just dumped by his girlfriend and still lives with his nagging mother.
One night, Hackel discovers a fresh incision behind his neck. His friend, Danny, tells him it’s a bomb and that someone has implanted one in his neck as well.
Soon after, Hackel begins receiving messages that force him to carry out missions with deadly results.
Later, Hackel is partnered with a series of strange people to commit heinous tasks.
With violence escalating around him, Hackel pieces together clues that reveal plans to breed a monstrous race of beings.
This smart movie, using life-size puppets, offers some interesting visuals and concepts as well as explorations of humanity.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.39:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio.
Don’t miss: Extras include interviews with performers and filmmakers, a commentary track with writer-director Evan Marlowe and producer Kerry Marlowe and a second commentary track with puppeteer Danny Montooth.
Slice of America: Charred in the Florida Sun (DVD)
Details: 2024, What Were We Thinking Films-MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A tasty documentary about Jimmy Fantin, a New Haven native with an abiding love for his town’s “apizza” (pronounced ah-beetz).
Fantin decides to bring what he considers the best charred, thin-crusted pizza in the world to southern Florida, opening Fantin’s “New Haven Style” Apizza in the small coastal town of Stuart.
Fantin’s pizzeria thrives thanks to the support of Connecticut snowbirds hungry for a slice of home and a rave review from One Bite’s Dave Portnoy.
The restaurant becomes the go-to place for pizza in Florida, with pizza-lovers driving hundreds of miles or more for just a slice of Fantin’s pies.
The movie is an amusing journey of pizza love, and it also is educational as viewers will learn about the origins of pizza as well as Fantin’s passion.
Technical aspects: 16:9 widescreen picture; English Dolby digital stereo; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Supplemental materials include a world premiere question-and-answer session, an introduction to the movie by the mayor of Stuart, a commentary track with director Gorman Bechard, a featurette with producer Colin M. Caplan, Bechard and others at Fantin’s, Caplan at the beach and answering the telephone, Caplan and Fantin joking around, a boat ride B-roll and Fantin’s son, Christopher’s message to his father.
Crust (Blu-ray & DVD)
Details: 2023, Anchor Bay Entertainment-MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: A horror-comedy about a washed-up former child star, Vegas Winters (Sean Whalen), who now owns and lives in a rundown laundromat.
He finds lost socks in the machines and uses them to soak up his bodily fluids — something I truly don’t want to picture or imagine.
One night, Winters’ tears of anguish turn the pile into a loving sock monster named Crust, who becomes his protector and friend.
Meanwhile, Winters has a new girlfriend, a paranormal investigator poking around and an old two-faced costar who is forcing him to join a reboot of their ’90s sitcom.
Soon, Winters life begins to crumble, so Crust eliminates his enemies with deadly consequences.
Whalen, who also co-wrote and directed the black-and-white movie, has created a crazy, original and delightful feature.
The cast includes Daniel Roebuck, Rebekah Kennedy and Alan Ruck.
Technical aspects: Blu-ray: 1080p high definition, widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital; DVD: widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital.
Don’t miss: Bonus options include a commentary track by Whalen; “Dorothy: 50 Years Later,” a short film written by Whalen; “Dorothy 2: The Bump and Run,” a short film featuring Whalen and Roebuck; and a question-and-answer session at the movie’s Los Angeles premiere.
Everything Will Be Alright (DVD)
Details: 2023, IndiePix Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Latvian filmmaker Stanislavs Tokalovs’ documentary takes us into the everyday lives of his immediate family who are members of the Russian-speaking community in Purvciems, a suburb outside of Riga.
Tokalovs’ family includes Nina, a 90-year-old World War II veteran who came to Latvia in 1955. Nina’s offspring include Irina, a university lecturer torn between her husband’s tirades, her mother’s needs and her 18-year-old daughter’s desires as an aspiring artist.
Together with cinematographer and co-writer Valdis Celmins, Tokalovs offers an intimate look at the internal and external conflicts affecting these individuals, one of which is Nina slowly losing her memory.
The movie unravels pertinent questions about integration, collective memory, propaganda and the war of identities that impacts many — in Latvia and around the world.
Technical aspects: 16:9 widescreen picture; Russian and Latvian 2.0 Dolby digital; English subtitles.
Afloat (DVD)
Details: 2023, IndiePix Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Zeynep, a Turkish woman and her American husband, seek to reunite with her estranged family so they travel from New York to a small coastal town in Turkey.
There, along with her divorced parents and younger sister, they begin a week-long sailing trip meant to be a last chance for Zeynep’s father, Yusuf, a dissident journalist being prosecuted by the government and facing prison, to reconnect with his daughters.
Events on the water go smoothly for a while, but as the family awaits the results of Yusuf’s appeal, tensions begin to rise, especially after the arrival of a young local man whose presence disrupts the delicate family dynamics, causing the trip to take an unexpected turn.
The movie, marking the debut of Turkish writer-director Aslihan Unaldi, pushes the boundaries of Middle Eastern cinema as it examines themes of class, family, sexuality and politics from the perspective of liberal, feminist and high educated Muslim women who are strong and complex.
Technical aspects: 16:9 widescreen picture; Turkish and English 5.1 Dolby digital; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a deleted scene and a short film by Unaldi.
Cursed in Baja (Blu-ray)
Details: 2024, Anchor Bay Entertainment
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: Pirelli, a former lawman and recently released convict, is enlisted to find an heir to a Los Angeles fortune.
Pirelli has a history with the wealthy family because of a past case. And the family hopes that he can find their lost grandson, the sole heir to the fortune.
The investigation takes Pirelli to Mexico where he faces off with a drug cartel, a beast worshiping cult and his own complicated past.
It’s a journey that challenges him like no other.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, widescreen picture; English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio; English and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: A making of featurette and a commentary track with writer-director-lead actor Jeff Daniel Phillips comprise the extras.
Men of War: Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray)
Details: 1994, MVD Rewind Collection-MVD Visual Entertainment
Rated: R, violence, language
The lowdown: Dolph Lundgren stars as Nick Gunar in this action-adventure feature as a former Special Forces member who leads a team hired by ruthless con men to carry out a secret operation and take over an exotic island loaded with precious jade.
But once there, Gunar and his men have a change of heart; they defect to defend the islanders.
It’s all-out war and the elite group wages war to defeat heavily armed opposition at any cost.
Among the movie’s screenwriters is John Sayles (“Eight Men Out,” “Matewan”). The characters are mostly one-dimensional because it is the fighting and explosions that are paramount here.
The cast also includes Charlotte Lewis, BD Wong, Anthony John Denison, Catherine Bell and Kevin Tighe.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 2.35:1 widescreen picture; English 5.1 Dolby digital surround, 2.0 LPCM monaural and Spanish 2.0 Dolby digital stereo; English and Spanish subtitles.
Don’t miss: Extras include a new introduction by director Perry Lang, an archival making of featurette, raw footage, dailies of select scenes and a mini-poster.
Toxic Crusaders: The Series (Blu-ray)
Details: 1991, Troma Films
Rated: Not rated
The lowdown: An animated series based on the cult classic, “The Toxic Avenger.”
In the series, Toxie, aided by his friends Yvonne, No-Zone, Head-Banger and Junkyard, stand up against the evil Dr. Kilemoff and his henchmen.
This Saturday morning TV series features an ecological and environmental friendly theme as our heroes battle the pollution-loving Kilemoff and his minions.
The series run time is 301 minutes of Troma-filled fun.
Technical aspects: 1080p high definition, 1.33:1 full-screen picture; English 2.0 Dolby digital; English subtitles.
Don’t miss: An introduction by Lloyd Kaufman, toy commercials and TV spots, a documentary about the making of the Toxic Crusaders video game, archival footage of the mop-wielding mutant and bonus cartoons comprise the extras.
Other titles being released on Tuesday, unless otherwise indicated:
The Climate According to AI Al Gore (DVD) (MVD Visual Entertainment)
How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies (Blu-ray & DVD & digital) (Well Go USA Entertainment)
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, STREAMING or VOD
Chasing Red (Magnolia Home Entertainment)
Depth of Field (One Tree Entertainment)
Dick Dynamite 1944 (Epic Pictures)
Four (Amazon Prime)
It’s Not Me (Sideshow-Janus Films)
The Reflected Self (Amazon Prime)
The Scent of Green Papaya (Apple TV+-Prime Video-Kino Lorber)
Sugarcane (Disney+-Hulu)
DEC. 11
Bad Sisters: Season 2, Episode 6 (Apple TV+)
Dream Productions (Disney+)
Shrinking: Season 2, Episode 10 (Apple TV+)
You Would Do It Too (Tú También lo Harías): Episode 8 (Apple TV+)
DEC. 12
Listen Up! (Viaplay)
Russian Ark (Kino Film Collection)
When Eight Bells Toll (Kino Film Collection)
DEC. 13
Before: Episode 9 (Apple TV+)
Dirty Angels (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
Drifters (Film Movement Plus)
Filthy Animals (Freestyle Digital Media)
Invitation to a Suicide (Lightyear Entertainment)
Scrap (Rue Dangeau)
Silo: Season 2, Episode 5 (Apple TV+)
What Lurks Beneath (Quiver Distribution)
Young Werther (Lionsgate Home Entertainment)
DEC. 16
Listen Carefully (Haida Street Films-RBG Films)
Coming next week: Piece by Piece
I am a founding member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. I review movies, 4K UHD, Blu-rays and DVDs for ReelBob (ReelBob.com), The Film Yap and other print and online publications. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com. You also can follow me on Twitter @ReelBobBloom and on Facebook at ReelBob or the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My movie reviews also can be found at Rotten Tomatoes: www.rottentomatoes.com.